Last weekend was quite eventful as I entered in my second 6 hr race this year. The city of Hatfield, WI is a beauty with a gravel road for main street and a winter population of 50! I started the race on a good note with not pushing it to fast and settled into a nice groove that I planned on attempting to keep for the entire ride. Around 10 miles per lap of 95% + single track and the most beautiful trails I'd ridden in Wisconsin.Three laps and just under three hours had gone by and I was feeling quite well. I took a 2 minute break and then rushed off to pass another racer. A 1/4 way through the lap I started to feel overwhelmed by the heat (around 90), yet I could still feel some coolness in the woods. I was starting to slow and 3/4 way through the loop I couldn't take it anymore and had to pull over and get off my bike as my vision wasn't clear and I was feeling quite bad. I rested a bit and decided that it was time to play it safe! I was discouraged as I was right where I wanted to be with pace and position.I finally finished the lap, walked over to my car and started puking instantly. After several times of this fun I sat, stared and drank some liquids while I examined what my body was doing. The race was over for me, just 10 miles short of the finish.Therefore, I've seen how I didn't drink enough water during the race as needed to push myself to drink. Bottles vs. a CamelBak to conserve weight didn't help. I'm sure the daily caffiene of Diet Coke for lunch didn't help either. Hard lessons to learn... I'd never had anything like this happen before and even lived in Phoenix for three months last year and did several 3 and 4 hour rides. Be safe out there as the heat is here!
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